Our Fave Bathroom Tile Design Ideas
Tile is often the most used material in the bathroom, so choosing the right one is an easy way to kick up your bathroom's style. See how top designers create both timeless and trendy looks with marble, cement, ceramic, porcelain, faux wood and glass tile.
Tile: Form Meets Function
Tile has been used in wet spaces since the days of the Roman Baths. Durable, waterproof and resistant to mold, germs and bacteria, glazed tile, like ceramic and porcelain, encaustic tile, like cement, and natural stone tile are all beautiful choices for bathroom flooring, walls and shower surrounds.
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Focus on the Floor
While the trough-style sink is definitely an eye-catcher, it's hard not to let your eye settle on this bath's cement tile floor where a kaleidoscopic pattern in shades of blue adds a big dose of color to this otherwise black-and-white bath.
Create Subtle Color Variations
This main bath has spa style cornered with the luxe Carrara marble herringbone floor and glossy, glass tile backsplash. The mosaic tiles feature a basketweave pattern with subtle color shifts, from watery blues and greens to grays and cream.
Embrace Your Flair for the Dramatic
The emerald green walls in this sumptuous main bath certainly prove that it's easy being green. Deep, dark and dramatic, the gemstone shade creates a beautiful backdrop to a Calacatta marble vanity and basketweave marble tile floor. Brass accents throughout add the perfect amount of golden glam.
The Stars Have It
Petite cream and gray stars mix trendy cement tile into this otherwise traditional bathroom. Centuries-old cement tile (also called encaustic tile) is a great choice for any wet space, thanks to the material's non-glazed and, therefore, non-slippery surface.
Customize for Kids
Kids' bathrooms are a great place to play with pattern and color. In this shared bathroom, designer Amy Peltier dressed up budget-friendly white subway tile with thin strips of blue porcelain pencil tile. Says the homeowner, “It’s one small tweak that made a huge impact — guests have always asked about it!”
And, Furkids
After all, pups need baths, too — a fact that designer Denise Davies celebrates in this spacious walk-in shower. It was customized for the furriest family member with a removable shower head and the word 'woof' spelled out in Kelly green penny-round tile.
Go to the Dark Side
Sure, all-white bathrooms are gorgeous but this main bath proves the power of dark colors to anchor a space. Designer Jasmin Reese turned the vanity area into a focal point with charcoal wood planks, a malachite-green vanity and 24x24 slate floor tiles.
Add a Graphic Punch
HGTV host and designer Sarah Richardson is famous for mixing patterns in unexpected ways but she takes a less-is-more approach in this dreamy spa bath where the room's big punch is provided by alternating bands of watery blue and green glass tile on the shower's accent wall. Keeping the more modern touch small helps it blend seamlessly with the otherwise traditional bathroom.
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Vary Tile's Size
Designer Mark Williams makes the slipper tub the star of this luxurious bathroom by tucking it into a tile-covered arch beneath an oversized Palladian window. Larger 9x18 Carrara marble tiles surround the window while smaller marble subway tiles line the arch. To complete the traditional look, Mark chose Cararra marble and black granite basketweave tiles for the bathroom's floor.
Or, Be Bold With Black + White
Always a classic, B+W is one of designers' favorite pairings. This spacious bathroom proves why — with bold cement tile flooring, an elegant bowed window and dramatically veined Calacatta marble in the frameless shower, this spa-style space is truly timeless.
Stick With a Single Material
Cool, classic and eternally in style, Carrara marble has become a go-to material for bathrooms big and small. While it's certainly beautiful, marble has its drawbacks. More porous than vitreous ceramic and porcelain tile that has a stainproof, glazed surface, natural marble must be resealed yearly to prevent stains and etching that would permanently mar its creamy good looks.
Or, Mix It Up
This petite guest bath is big on style with a playful mix of tile that defines different elements of the space. From the geometric black-and-white floor tile to the horizontal lines of the white-tiled shower to the bold pop of yellow penny-round on the backsplash, the combination is fun, graphic and modern.
Make It an Escape
Says designer and homeowner Veronica Solomon, “This is meant to be a sanctuary, but it wouldn’t be one for me without a pattern mix.” To create her escape, Veronica mixed a mural wallpaper with graphic Kelly Wearstler for Ann Sacks floor tiles. “You can put florals and geometrics together if the tones are similar,” she says. See more of Veronica's maximalist style home, below.
Hex's History
Sometimes referred to as honeycomb tile, hex first became popular in Craftsman and bungalow-style homes of the late 1800s and remained one of the most beloved bathroom tile choices till the early 1940s. Originally available only as 1-inch tiles in shades of black or white, tile layers would often flex their creativity and combine the tiny tiles into simple daisies, seen here, or lay a central field of white hex tiles, surrounded by black bands or a Greek key border composed of 1-inch square black tiles.
Modernize With Matte
Choosing tile in a matte (or gloss-less) finish translates to a more modern look. Here, the designers at Hatch Works used matte black terra-cotta hex tiles as both the flooring and as a backsplash for the streamlined, freestanding tub.
Gray Grout: an Eye-Catching Option
Filling the spaces between tiles to create a waterproof barrier, grout is a necessity — but it doesn't necessarily have to be white. With the addition of colorful pigments, grout can be most any shade you'd like. To really draw attention to tile's geometric shape and make it a focal point, gray or black grout creates a more modern look.
Or, Go for the Gold
In this posh powder room, metallic gold grout gives the marble hex flooring an added bit of sparkle and visually ties it into the sink's brass fixture and the vanity's gold trim.
Choose a Classic With Basketweave
Another historically accurate choice for older homes, basketweave tile gets its name thanks to the trompe l'oeil effect created by the tiles being cut to produce a woven appearance, like a basket. Available in both budget-friendly ceramic and pricier marble, this classic tile may look difficult to install but the pattern comes pre-arranged on a mesh backing so installation cost is approximately the same as other types of mosaic tile.
Add Style With Subway Tile
As the name implies, subway tile was first used in the New York City subway system in 1904 but the 3x6 brick's easy-to-clean surface and sleek design with minimal grout lines (compared to many of the 1-inch tiles popular at the time) soon ensured its use in kitchens and bathrooms all over the country, starting in the 1920s and cycling back into vogue today. But keep in mind that subway tile is best used for wall application. The glazed surface could be slippery when wet so choose different tile for flooring.
Wow With Wood
While real wood can be a tricky choice for a wet space, porcelain tiles that resemble wood, like these rustic planks, are a can't-miss pick.
Or, Create Walls With Wow Factor
Patterned tile isn't just for the floor as this spa-style space proves. Here, beautifully veined stone floor planks create a sense of movement, but the real star is the patterned porcelain wall tile that ties into the stone's gray-and-white color palette.
Powder Room: Make the Wall Pop
Small baths can still be big on style. Here, designer John McClain created an accent wall with gorgeous glazed green tile installed in a herringbone pattern on just one wall, for maximum impact. Limiting tile to just a focal wall is also a great way to save money, especially when working with a pricey material.
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Powder Room: Focus on the Floor
To really give your powder room punch, consider handmade tile, like these cement beauties. With a matte finish and graphic patterns that are part of the tile itself (not just on the surface like glazed tile), it's easy to understand why they're so trendy and a top pick of designers today.
Pattern: More Is More
Filling this small bath with floor-to-ceiling pattern was certainly a bold choice, but it paid off in helping to disguise the century-old rowhouse's angled shower wall in this third floor dormer.
Or, Limit It for Effect
Rather than all-over pattern, consider pairing more muted styles, like the natural stone and neutral diamonds seen here, with a more limited amount of patterned tile, for a serene and spa-like effect.
And, Add Interest to Insets
Patterned tile is also a great choice for livening up shower niches. Here, black-and-white marble tiles laid in a playful plaid pattern add a lot of personality to the inset shelves.
Rock the Rainbow
Can't decide on a color? Don't worry, tile's got you covered! Available in every shade imaginable, glazed ceramic tile is also a budget-friendly option. You could even take a cue from this homeowner who collected a wide variety of colorful scrap tile for a truly one-of-a-kind look.
Or, Go Graphic With Stripes
Bold and daring, B+W is a combo that's always in fashion. To create this broken-stripe effect, tile layers just needed to stagger the strips of tile when installing.
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Maximize the Material
Although you might mistake the herringbone floors in this posh bathroom for wood or even a painted detail, it's actually marble that designer Joni Spear had painstakingly cut into 4-inch-wide planks, then laid in a specific order to maximize the color contrast and veining between different areas of the stone.
Go Big
For an eye-catching take on traditionally small hex tile, designer Curtis Popp decked out this Folsom, California, bathroom with a blown-up version (Bee Hive tiles by Daltile) in a random pattern. “It has the effect of wallpaper,” he says. An oak vanity, a gray Caesarstone counter and concrete floors keep the space simple and sleek.
Get Creative
This modern and uber-hip small bathroom, designed by Brian Patrick Flynn, is full of outside-the-box ideas, including a graphic pattern on the door, created by attaching cut wood planks, and a mini mosaic accent wall that Brian added to both brighten up the vanity area and make the walls feel taller.
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Use Various Tile Shapes in Different Colors
San Francisco Bay-area designer Kriste Michelini uses tile to create a divide between the wet and dry areas of the bathroom. She frequently experiments with unique combinations of tile and uses various tile shapes in the same marble material to create a sense of infinite space.
Add Glitz With Glass
Portland, Oregon-based designer Jessica Helgerson believes the little tiling details can make or break a space. For example, she finds it's important to carefully consider where the tile starts and stops. If there isn't a clean way to end the tiling, she'll often take the tile all the way up the wall. This bathroom features one of Jessica's favorite mosaic tiles, made by Oceanside GlassTile.
Modernize by Making It Monochromatic
For this small bathroom, designer Kriste Michelini creates a streamlined, minimal look by using the same tile on the floor and walls. The entire space is wrapped in a square, charcoal tile that's offset with a floating chrome vanity.
Customize With Decorative Trim
In this bathroom, designer Jessica Helgerson keeps it classic with 3x6 white tile from Pratt and Larson's Simple Solutions line, which offers a wide variety of trim options. For example, the tile wainscot has a decorative base and top cap, and a different cap is used for the edge of the tub. She then uses traditional black-and-white hex on the floor, creating a decorative border with the white tile.
Go Vertical
When designer Cortney Bishop was presented with the challenge of this large bathroom, she decided to create a light and airy waterfall-like atmosphere. To accomplish this, she had the glass tiles installed vertically and chose neutral grout. "As a general rule, less is more. Using one tile throughout a space gives a cleaner, more consistent look," Bishop says.
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Pay Attention to the Tile Glazes
Together with her husband, Brian, artist Edith Heath founded Heath Ceramics in Sausalito, California, in 1948. They focused on bringing out the natural beauty of the clay. The company still makes tiles using the same production techniques and matte glazes developed by Edith in 1948.